Stereovision monitoring system for cooking appliance

ABSTRACT

A cooking appliance includes a body defining a cooking cavity. A door is rotatably coupled to the body. An imager assembly is coupled to an interior surface of the door. The imager assembly includes an image sensor configured to obtain image data within a field of view, a first primary mirror positioned at a first angle proximate to the image sensor and within the field of view, and a second primary mirror positioned at a second angle proximate to the image sensor and within the field of view. A secondary mirror assembly includes multiple secondary mirrors coupled to the body within the cooking cavity. The secondary mirrors reflect image views within the cooking cavity to the first primary mirror and the second primary mirror which reflects the image views to the image sensor to be captured as the image data.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure generally relates to a monitoring system, andmore specifically, to a stereovision monitoring system for a cookingappliance.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a cooking applianceincludes a body defining a cooking cavity. A door is rotatably coupledto the body. An imager assembly is coupled to an interior surface of thedoor. The imager assembly includes an image sensor configured to obtainimage data within a field of view, a first primary mirror positioned ata first angle proximate to the image sensor and within the field ofview, and a second primary mirror positioned at a second angle proximateto the image sensor and within the field of view. A secondary mirrorassembly includes multiple secondary mirrors coupled to the body withinthe cooking cavity. The secondary mirrors reflect image views within thecooking cavity to the first primary mirror and the second primarymirror, which reflects the image views to the image sensor to becaptured as the image data.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a stereovisionmonitoring system for a cooking appliance includes a body defining acooking cavity. A door is rotatably coupled to the body. An imagerassembly is coupled to one of the door and the body. The imager assemblyincludes a support feature that defines an interior cavity, an imagercoupled to the support feature on a first side of the interior cavity,and at least one primary mirror coupled to the support feature on asecond side of the interior cavity. At least one secondary mirror isdisposed within the cooking cavity. The at least one secondary mirrorreflects at least one image view of the cooking cavity to the at leastone primary mirror. The at least one primary mirror reflects the atleast one image view to the imager to be captured as image data. Acontroller is operably coupled to the imager assembly to receive theimage data.

According to yet another aspect of the present disclosure, an imagesystem for a cooking appliance includes a support structure. An imageris coupled to the support structure. The imager is configured to obtainimage data within a field of view. A primary mirror assembly is coupledto the support structure proximate to the imager. The primary mirrorassembly includes a first primary mirror, which is disposed at a firstangle within the field of view of the imager, and a second primarymirror, which is disposed at a second angle within the field of view ofthe imager. A secondary mirror assembly is configured to reflect imageviews of the cooking cavity to the primary mirror assembly. The imageviews are reflected by the primary mirror assembly to the imager to becaptured as the image data. A controller is configured to receive theimage data from the imager.

These and other features, advantages, and objects of the presentdisclosure will be further understood and appreciated by those skilledin the art by reference to the following specification, claims, andappended drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a cooking appliance, according tothe present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of an imager assembly of a monitoringsystem coupled to an appliance door, according to the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of an imager assembly for a cookingappliance monitoring system, according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a front elevational view of a cooking cavity having twosecondary mirrors arranged in an upper corner, according to the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 5 is a front elevational view of the cooking cavity of FIG. 4illustrating image views represented by arrows A1, A2 and arrows B1, B2,within reflection zones of the secondary mirrors being reflected fromthe secondary mirrors to an imager assembly, as represented by arrowsC1, C2, according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of a cooking cavity with foursecondary mirrors arranged in upper and lower corners, according to thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a front elevational view of a cooking cavity with foursecondary mirrors arranged in upper and lower corners on a single sideof the cooking cavity opposite of an imager assembly, according to thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a monitoring system with secondarymirrors disposed proximate to windows for reflecting image viewsrepresented by arrows A1, A2 from the secondary mirrors to an imagerassembly, as represented by arrows C1, C2 and arrows D1, D2, accordingto the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a monitoring system with an imagerassembly disposed vertically above mirrors with image views representedby arrows A1, A2 being directed to the mirrors and subsequentlyreflected to the imager assembly, as represented by arrows C1, C2 andarrows D1, D2, according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a monitoring system for a cookingappliance, according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 is representative of two sub-images derived from image datacaptured in a cooking cavity by a stereovision monitoring system,according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 12 is representative of a notification from a monitoring systemdisplayed on a user interface of a cooking appliance, according to thepresent disclosure; and

FIG. 13 is representative of a notification from a monitoring systemdisplayed on a remote device, according to the present disclosure.

The components in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasisinstead being placed upon illustrating the principles described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present illustrated embodiments reside primarily in combinations ofmethod steps and apparatus components related to a stereovisionmonitoring system for a cooking appliance. Accordingly, the apparatuscomponents and method steps have been represented, where appropriate, byconventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specificdetails that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of thepresent disclosure so as not to obscure the disclosure with details thatwill be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art havingthe benefit of the description herein. Further, like numerals in thedescription and drawings represent like elements.

For purposes of description herein, the terms “upper,” “lower,” “right,”“left,” “rear,” “front,” “vertical,” “horizontal,” and derivativesthereof shall relate to the disclosure as oriented in FIG. 1 . Unlessstated otherwise, the term “front” shall refer to the surface of theelement closer to an intended viewer, and the term “rear” shall refer tothe surface of the element further from the intended viewer. However, itis to be understood that the disclosure may assume various alternativeorientations, except where expressly specified to the contrary. It isalso to be understood that the specific devices and processesillustrated in the attached drawings, and described in the followingspecification are simply exemplary embodiments of the inventive conceptsdefined in the appended claims. Hence, specific dimensions and otherphysical characteristics relating to the embodiments disclosed hereinare not to be considered as limiting, unless the claims expressly stateotherwise.

The terms “including,” “comprises,” “comprising,” or any other variationthereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that aprocess, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elementsdoes not include only those elements but may include other elements notexpressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, orapparatus. An element proceeded by “comprises a . . . ” does not,without more constraints, preclude the existence of additional identicalelements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that comprisesthe element.

Referring to FIGS. 1-13 , reference numeral 10 generally designates acooking appliance that has a body 12 that defines a cooking cavity 14. Adoor 16 is rotatably coupled to the body 12. An imager assembly 18 iscoupled to an interior surface 20 of the door 16. The imager assembly 18includes an imager or image sensor 22 configured to obtain image datawithin a field of view 24. The imager assembly 18 also includes a firstprimary mirror 26 positioned at a first angle proximate to the imagesensor 22 and within the field of view 24, and a second primary mirror28 positioned at a second angle proximate to the image sensor 22 andwithin the field of view 24. A secondary mirror assembly 30 includesmultiple secondary mirrors 32, 34 coupled to the body 12 within thecooking cavity 14. The secondary mirrors 32, 34 reflect image viewswithin the cooking cavity 14 to the first primary mirror 26 and thesecond primary mirror 28 which reflect the image views to the imagesensor 22 to be captured as the image data.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the cooking appliance 10 includes the body12 with the door 16 rotatably coupled to the body 12. The door 16 isconfigured to rotate between a closed position 40 and an opened position42 to selectively allow access to the cooking cavity 14. The cookingappliance 10 is illustrated as a single-cavity, countertop appliance. Itis contemplated that the cooking appliance 10 may be a mountedappliance, a slide-in appliance, a freestanding appliance, or acountertop appliance. Additionally, the cooking appliance 10 may includethe single cooking cavity 14 or multiple cooking cavities 14.Additionally or alternatively, the cooking appliance 10 may be, forexample, a microwave oven, a traditional oven, or a multi-functionappliance that performs oven-like functions (e.g., roast, bake, etc.) aswell as other functions.

Referring to FIG. 2 , as well as FIG. 3 , the cooking appliance 10includes a monitoring system 44 for monitoring the cooking cavity 14.The monitoring system 44 is generally an image-based monitoring system44. In certain aspects, the monitoring system 44 is a stereovisionmonitoring system 44 that utilizes the single image sensor 22. Themonitoring system 44 includes the image sensor 22 to obtain the imagedata within the field of view 24. The field of view 24 of the imagesensor 22 generally extends toward and at least partially into thecooking cavity 14.

The image sensor 22 may be any area type imager, such as a chargecoupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS)imager, or any type of color or black-and-white camera. In certainaspects, the image sensor 22 is a wide-angle camera configured to obtainthe image data within the field of view 24 in the cooking cavity 14. Asdiscussed further herein, the image data includes multiple image viewsfrom multiple visual angles from within the cooking cavity 14. It iscontemplated that the image data may include at least one of a picture,a video, real-time streaming of image data, other transmissions of imagedata, or combinations thereof without departing from the teachingsherein. The stereovision monitoring system 44 provides the multipleimage views using the single image sensor 22.

In the example illustrated in FIG. 2 , the imager assembly 18 is coupledto the interior surface 20 of the door 16. The imager assembly 18 iscentrally located proximate to an upper edge 48 of the door 16 but maybe coupled to any practicable position on the door 16. The imagerassembly 18 includes a support structure 50 that couples to the door 16.The support structure 50 includes a base housing 52 and a supportfeature 54. The base housing 52 is generally disposed within theinterior of the door 16, while the support feature 54 extends throughand away from the interior surface 20 of the door 16. In certainaspects, the door 16 may include multiple glass panels. The image sensor22 may be disposed between two adjacent layers of glass panels on thedoor 16.

The support feature 54 may have three walls 56, 58, 60, as illustratedin FIG. 2 , or may have two walls 56, 58, as illustrated in FIG. 3 . Inthe example illustrated in FIG. 2 , two walls 56, 60 extend from thebase housing 52 and are generally parallel. The wall 58 extends betweenthe two walls 56, 60 and extends generally parallel to a surface of thebase housing 52. The wall 58 is positioned directly between the imagesensor 22 and the cooking cavity 14. When the door 16 is in the closedposition 40 (FIG. 1 ), the wall 56 is an upper wall, the wall 58 is aninner wall, and, if included, the wall 60 is a lower wall.

The walls 56, 58, 60 and the base housing 52 define an interior cavity62 therebetween. In various examples, the support feature 54 includesthe walls 56, 58, and may not include the third wall 60, as illustratedin FIG. 3 . In such configurations, the support feature 54 has anL-shape extending away from and then parallel to the base housing 52. Alens 64 is coupled to the base housing 52 on a first side 66 of theinterior cavity 62 and aligns with the image sensor 22 disposed withinthe base housing 52. A primary mirror assembly 68, including the firstand second primary mirrors 26, 28, is coupled to the wall 58 on a secondside 70 of the interior cavity 62. The primary mirror assembly 68 isdisposed proximate to the lens 64 and within the field of view 24 of theimage sensor 22. The interior cavity 62 is a sufficient size to housethe lens 64 and the primary mirror assembly 68 spaced from one another.

As previously stated, the primary mirror assembly 68 includes the firstand second primary mirrors 26, 28. The first and second primary mirrors26, 28 are each coupled to the wall 58 and extend into the interiorcavity 62. The primary mirrors 26, 28 may not extend out of the interiorcavity 62. Additionally or alternatively, the first primary mirror 26 isdisposed at a first angle α and the second primary mirror 28 is disposedon a second angle β relative to the wall 58. Generally, the first andsecond angles α, β are mirror images of one another. The primary mirrors26, 28 extend from the wall 58 and toward one another. In variousaspects, the primary mirrors 26, 28 are coupled to or abut one anotherproximate to the lens 64. The specific angles α, β of the primarymirrors 26, 28 may be adjusted to reflect the image views to the imagesensor 22 to be captured as the image data, as described further herein.It is contemplated that the field of view 24 is split and divertedgenerally parallel to the interior surface 20 of the door 16 to thesecondary mirror assembly 30 by the primary mirror assembly 68. Thesecondary mirror assembly 30 is oriented to direct light towards thecooking cavity 14.

When the imager assembly 18 is coupled to the door 16, the primarymirror assembly 68 is oriented laterally. In such configurations, thewall 56 is an upper wall and the wall 60, if included, is a lower wall,leaving open lateral sides for the primary mirror assembly 68 to reflectthe image views. Further, in such configurations, the first primarymirror 26 is oriented in a first lateral direction (e.g., right) and thesecond primary mirror 28 is oriented in a second lateral direction(e.g., left).

Referring to FIG. 4 , the cooking appliance 10 includes a heatingelement 78 generally coupled in a top wall 80 that defines the cookingcavity 14. It is contemplated that the heating element 78 may bedisposed in additional or alternative locations without departing fromthe teachings herein. The heating element 78 is configured to produce orgenerate heat within the cooking cavity 14 to cook food items 82 placedin the cooking cavity 14. The cooking cavity 14 is generally defined bymultiple walls including two sidewalls 84, 86, a rear wall 88, the topwall 80, and a bottom wall 90.

The sidewalls 84, 86 includes supports 96 arranged to define multiplecooking levels 98. In the illustrated configuration of FIG. 4 , thesupports 96 defined five cooking levels 98A-98F, which are generallyreferred to herein as the cooking levels 98. Multiple racks 100 areillustrated within the cooking cavity 14 on the supports 96. At anygiven time, one or more racks 100 may be disposed within the cookingcavity 14 at the various cooking levels 98. The food items 82 aresupported on the racks 100. The user may adjust the number and position(e.g., the cooking level 98) of each rack 100.

The cooking appliance 10 includes one or more light sources 120 operablycoupled with the cooking cavity 14. Generally, the light sources 120emit light into the cooking cavity 14. The light sources 120 generallycontrol an intensity and color of light within the cooking cavity 14.The light sources 120 may remain activated (e.g., emitting light) whenthe imager assembly 18 is activated to illuminate the cooking cavity 14and thereby allowing the imager assembly 18 to obtain the image data. Asthe imager assembly 18 may be utilized to monitor an entire cookingprocess, or a substantial portion thereof, the light source 120 may alsobe activated during the entire or a substantial portion of the cookingprocess.

In various examples, the light source 120 may emit visible light thathas a wavelength in a range of from about 380 nm to about 740 nm, or amix of wavelengths in this range. The light source 120 may include anyform of light source, for example, fluorescent lighting, light emittingdiodes (LEDs), organic LEDs (OLEDs), polymer LEDs (PLEDs), laser diodes,quantum dot LEDs (QD-LEDs), solid-state lighting, a hybrid, and/or anyother similar device. Any other form of lighting may be utilized withinthe cooking appliance 10 without departing from the teachings herein.Further, various types of LEDs are suitable for use as the light source120, including, but not limited to, top-emitting LEDs, side-emittingLEDs, and others. According to various examples, multicolored lightsources, such as Red, Green, and Blue (RGB) LEDs that employ red, green,and blue LED packaging may be used to generate various desired colors oflight output from a single light source, according to known light colormixing techniques. Moreover, the light source 120 may be configured as asingle light source, or alternatively, as more than one light sourcethat can be selectively and independently controlled. Moreover, thelight sources 120 may emit any wavelength of light for illuminating thecooking cavity 14 to obtain the image data without departing from theteachings herein.

Referring still to FIG. 4 , as well as to FIG. 5 , the secondary mirrorassembly 30 is disposed within the cooking cavity 14. In the illustratedconfiguration, two secondary mirrors 32, 34 are included in thesecondary mirror assembly 30. The first secondary mirror 32 is disposedin an upper rear corner 110 within the cooking cavity 14, and the secondsecondary mirror 34 is disposed in an opposing upper rear corner 112.The secondary mirrors 32, 34 are oriented at predefined angles forreflecting the image views of the food items 82 from different visualangles to the imager assembly 18.

Each of the secondary mirrors 32, 34 includes a reflection zone 122within the cooking cavity 14. The reflection zone 122 includes an areawithin the cooking cavity 14 that is reflected by each secondary mirror32, 34. In the example illustrated in FIG. 5 , with the two secondarymirrors 32, 34, the secondary mirror assembly 30 has two reflectionzones 122. The reflection zones 122 are oriented at different oropposing angles within the cooking cavity 14, with each reflection zone122 corresponding with one of the secondary mirrors 32, 34. In this way,a first side of the food item 82 is included in the reflection zone 122of the secondary mirror 32 and a second opposing side of the food item82 is included in the reflection zone 122 corresponding to the secondarymirror 34. Additionally or alternatively, the food item 82 in thevarious reflection zones 122 reflects light toward the secondary mirrorassembly 30. The secondary mirrors 32, 34 may be disposed at angles thatare mirror images of one another, or alternative may be disposed atdifferent angles depending on the location of the imager assembly 18.

The image view of the first side of the two food items 82 is representedby arrow A1 and arrow B1, respectively. The arrows A1, B1 represent theimage view within the reflection zone 122 of the secondary mirror 110.The secondary mirror 32 then reflects the image views A1, B1 to theimager assembly 18, represented by arrow C1. The image view representedby the arrow C1 is captured by the imager assembly 18. Similarly, theimage view of the second side of the two food items 82 is represented byarrow A2 and arrow B2, respectively. The image views represented by thearrows A2, B2 are then reflected by the secondary mirror 34 to theimager assembly 18, as represented by arrow C2. In this way, thereflected image views represented by the arrows C1, C2 may be capturedsimultaneously by the imager assembly 18 to capture different imageviews (e.g., A1, B1 and A2, B2) within the cooking cavity 14.

Referring to FIG. 6 , an additional alternative configuration of thesecondary mirror assembly 30 is illustrated. As illustrated in FIG. 6 ,the secondary mirror assembly 30 includes four secondary mirrors 32, 34,126, 128. The secondary mirrors 32, 34 are disposed in the upper rearcorners 110, 112, respectively. The secondary mirror 126 is disposed ina lower rear corner 130, and the secondary mirror 128 is disposed in anopposing lower rear corner 132. In this way, each corner 110, 112, 130,132 proximate to the rear wall 88 includes one secondary mirror 32, 34,126, 128 disposed at a predefined angle. Similar to the secondarymirrors 32, 34, the secondary mirrors 126, 128 may be arranged as mirrorimages of one another or may be arranged at different angles. Further,the secondary mirrors 32, 34 may be mirror images of the secondarymirrors 126, 128 (e.g., over a y-axis).

Each of the secondary mirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 is configured to reflecta separate image view toward the imager assembly 18. In this way, fourseparate image views corresponding with different visual angles may bereflected to the imager assembly 18 to be captured in the image data.The image views in the illustrated configuration may include a firstside upper view, a second side upper view, a first side lower view, anda second side lower view. However, the different image views may beadjusted based on the positioning and angle of the secondary mirrorassembly 30.

Referring again to FIGS. 2-6 , the position and angles of the secondarymirror assembly 30 may be determined by the relationship between theimage sensor 22 and the secondary mirrors 32, 34, 126, 128. Variouscomponents that may affect the arrangement of the monitoring system 44include a focal length of the image sensor 22, the field of view 24 ofthe image sensor 22, x- and y-dimensions of the image sensor 22, andpixels in the image data. The secondary mirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 may beany practicable size based on the image sensor 22. For example, when theimager assembly 18 is coupled to a central location on the door 16, theposition of the secondary mirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 may be determined byEquation (I) and Equation (II) below:

$\begin{matrix}{{{Roll} = {a{\sin\left( \frac{\frac{h_{cavity}}{s} - v_{offset}}{\frac{w_{cavity}}{2}} \right)}}},} & {{Equation}(I)}\end{matrix}$ $\begin{matrix}{{{Yaw} = {a{\sin\left( \frac{\frac{d_{cavity}}{s} - h_{offset}}{\frac{w_{cavity}}{2}} \right)}}},} & {{Equation}({II})}\end{matrix}$

where h_(cavity), w_(cavity), and d_(cavity) are a height, a width, anda depth, respectively, of the cooking cavity 14, v_(offset) is adistance between the top wall 80 of the cooking cavity 14 and the imagesensor 22, and h_(offset) is a distance a center of the primary mirrors26, 28 extend from door 16.

Referring to FIG. 7 , an additional or alternative configuration of themonitoring system 44 is illustrated. In the illustrated example, theimager assembly 18 is coupled to the sidewall 86 of the cookingappliance 10 that defines the cooking cavity 14. The imager assembly 18may extend partially into the cooking cavity 14, as illustrated, or maybe disposed behind the sidewall 86 and aligned with a transparentportion or window of the sidewall 86 to obtain the image data from thecooking cavity 14. In the configuration illustrated in FIG. 7 , foursecondary mirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 are included in the cooking cavity14. The secondary mirror 32 is disposed in an upper front corner 134,the secondary mirror 34 is disposed in the upper rear corner 110, thesecondary mirror 126 is disposed in a lower front corner 136, and thesecondary mirror 128 the disposed in a lower front corner 138. Each ofthe secondary mirrors 32 reflects the image view from the correspondingreflection zone 122 to the imager assembly 18. In the illustratedconfiguration, the image views may include a combination of upper andlower, as well as front and rear image views.

Referring to FIG. 8 , a schematic diagram of an additional oralternative configuration of the monitoring system 44 is illustrated.The secondary mirrors 32, 34 may be disposed outside of the cookingcavity 14 and be aligned with windows 140 or other transparent portionsthat provide a view into the cooking cavity 14. The secondary mirrors32, 34 and the imager assembly 18 with the primary mirror assembly 68are disposed on the same side of the cooking cavity 14. For example,each of the imager assembly 18 and the secondary mirrors 32 may becoupled to the door 16 or alternatively, the secondary mirrors 32, 34may be arranged on a front of the body and the imager assembly 18 may becoupled to the door 16. When the secondary mirrors 32, 34 are coupled tothe body 12, the secondary mirrors 32, 34 may be disposed in tunnelsadjacent to the cooking cavity 14 and separated from the cooking cavity14 by the windows 140. The windows 140 may act to form a periscope viewfor the secondary mirrors 32, 34 and the secondary mirrors 32, 34 areprotected from heat, grease, and food splatter. Two separate image viewsof the food item 82 within the cooking cavity 14 are reflected from thesecondary mirrors 32, 34 to the primary mirrors 26, 28 and,subsequently, to the imager assembly 18.

Referring to FIG. 9 , a schematic diagram of an additional alternativeconfiguration of the monitoring system 44 is illustrated. The monitoringsystem 44 includes four total mirrors, including two secondary mirrors32, 34 and two primary mirrors 26, 28. The secondary mirrors 32, 34 havethe corresponding reflection zones 122 oriented toward the food item 82disposed within the cooking cavity 14. Two opposing image views arereflected from the reflection zones 122 by the secondary mirrors 32, 34to the primary mirrors 26, 28. The primary mirror assembly 68 may beincluded in or separate from the imager assembly 18 and arranged toreflect the image views to the image sensor 22 to be captured as theimage data.

In the illustrated example, the image sensor 22 may be positionedvertically above the primary mirror assembly 68 and the secondary mirrorassembly 30, for example on the top wall 80. The primary mirror assembly68 and the secondary mirror assembly 30 may be arranged along an x-axisof the cooking appliance 10. In this way, the field of view 24 of theimager assembly 18 may extend downward toward the cooking cavity 14 andinclude the primary mirror assembly 68.

Referring again to FIG. 8 and still to FIG. 9 , two separate imageviews, represented by the arrows A1, A2, are captured by the imagerassembly 18. The image view of the first side of the food item 82,represented by the arrow A1, is included in the reflection zone 122 ofthe secondary mirror 32. The secondary mirror 32 reflects the image viewrepresented by arrow A1 to the primary mirror 26 of the imager assembly18, as represented by the arrow C1. The primary mirror 26 then reflectsthe image view, represented by arrow D1, to the image sensor 22.

Similarly, the image view of the second side of the food item 82,represented by the arrow A2, is included in the reflection zone 122 ofthe secondary mirror 34 and is reflected to the primary mirror 28, asrepresented by the arrow C2. The primary mirror 28 then reflects theimage view to the image sensor 22, as represented by the arrow D2. Theimage views represented by the arrows D1, D2 may be directed through alight tunnel, optics, the lens 62, etc. to direct the image views to theimage sensor 22 to be captured. While the image views are represented byarrows it is understood that the image views generally include a broaderarea within the cooking cavity 14 included in the reflection zones 122.The image views of the broader area are reflected to and captured by theimager assembly 18.

Referring to FIGS. 2-9 , the configuration of the monitoring system 44is flexible. The position of the imager assembly 18, the primary mirrorassembly 68, and/or the secondary mirror assembly 30 may be adjusted toany practicable position that allows the image views to be reflected tothe image sensor 22. The secondary mirror assembly 30 may be arranged inthe upper corners of the cooking cavity 14, the lower corners of thecooking cavity 14, the rear corners of the cooking cavity 14, and/or thefront corners of the cooking cavity 14. Additionally or alternatively,the secondary mirror assembly 30 may be disposed on a y-axis within thecooking cavity 30. In additional non-limiting examples, the secondarymirror assembly 30 may be arranged on either of the sidewalls 84, 86 orthe rear wall 88. Further, the secondary mirror assembly 30 may bearranged outside of the cooking cavity 14. The position of the secondarymirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 may depend on the position of the image sensor22.

The image sensor 22 may be arranged on the door 16 or within the cookingcavity 14.

The secondary mirror assembly 30 is arranged to reflect multiple imageviews to the primary mirror assembly 68, which consequently reflects theimage views to the image sensor 22. The image sensor 22 is positionedproximate to the primary mirrors 26, 28 that reflect the image viewsfrom two to four secondary mirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 to show two to fourunique vantage points or perspectives of the cooking cavity 14. Theimager assembly 18 is spaced from the heating element 78 to protect theimage sensor 22 and other electronic components within the imagerassembly 18 from overheating and, consequently, damage and failure.Additionally, when the imager assembly 18 is positioned on an outerportion of the cooking cavity 14, the lens 64 is more protected fromfood splatter.

Referring to FIG. 10 , as well as to FIGS. 1-9 , the imager assembly 18generally includes a control unit 142 having a processor 144, a memory146, and other control circuitry. Instructions or routines 148 arestored with the memory 146 and executable by the processor 144. Theimager assembly 18 is configured to capture the image data from withinthe field of view 24. The field of view 24 includes the primary mirrorassembly 68, which reflects the image views of the cooking cavity 14from the secondary mirror assembly 30. The reflected image views arecaptured as the image data by the image sensor 22 and processed by thecontrol unit 142. In certain aspects, the control unit 142 may includeat least one routine 148 directed to separating the image data intosmaller standard-sized images. In such configurations, the image sensor22 may be a wide-angle camera that captures wide-angled image data thatis separated into about two standard images. The originally capturedimage data and/or the processed image data, collectively referred toherein as the image data, may then be communicated for additionalprocessing and analyzing.

The monitoring system 44 may include a controller 150 having a processor152, a memory 154, and other control circuitry. Instructions or routines156 are stored within the memory 154 and executable by the processor152. The control circuitry may include communication circuitry 158 forbidirectional communication.

The controller 150 is communicatively coupled with the imager assembly18 to receive the image data. The controller 150 may further process theimage data. In various examples, the controller 150 is configured toanalyze pixels of the image data received from the imager assembly 18.The controller 150 may be configured to separate the image data intomultiple sub-images 160, such as sub-images 160A, 160B illustrated inFIG. 11 . The sub-images 160A, 160B may correspond with the two standardimages separated from the wide-angle image data by the imager assembly18.

The controller 150 may include at least one routine 156 that splits theimage data into the sub-images 160 that correspond with the image views.For example, when the secondary mirror assembly 30 includes the twosecondary mirrors 32, 34, the controller 150 may be configured to splitthe image data into two sub-images 160A, 160B. The sub-image 160Acorresponds with the image view reflected from the secondary mirror 32and the sub-image 160B corresponds with the image view reflected fromthe secondary mirror 34. The image data, such as a single image captureby the image sensor 22, may be divided into the sub-images 160 based onthe number of secondary mirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 in the secondary mirrorassembly 30. Generally, the sub-images 160 collectively form the imagedata or capture obtained by the image sensor 22.

The controller 150 is configured to divide the image data across thesingle image sensor 22. In certain aspects, the controller 150 maydivide the image data into more than two sub-images 160. As an arrayresolution of the image sensor 22 is increased or a total pixelresolution in the sub-images 160 decreases, it is possible to split ordivide the final image data into more than two sub-images 160. In suchexamples, the controller 150 includes at least one routine 156 to dividea final RGB array output into corresponding sections aligning eachsection with the image view reflected onto the image sensor 22. Thecontroller 150 may store information related to which section of theimage data aligns with the various image views of the secondary mirrorassembly 30. Each image view reflected onto the image sensor 22 is apredefined size based on the secondary mirror assembly 30. Based on thepredefined size, the controller 150 may determine which pixels of theimage correspond to which secondary mirror 32, 34, 126, 128 based on thelocation the pixels fall on the final image data. For example, with twoimage views, the pixels may be split in half and with four image views,the pixels may be split into quadrants. The controller 150 mayselectively process and analyze a portion of the pixels based on thecorresponding image view.

Referring still to FIG. 10 , the controller 150 is configured to analyzeand overlay the sub-images 160. The controller 150 may determine animage quality of the sub-images 160 to determine which sub-images 160are to be used in subsequent analysis. Different types of analysis mayutilize a different number of sub-images 160.

In various examples, the monitoring system 44 may utilize an obstructedmirror contingency process for updating the image processing inreal-time during a cooking process. The controller 150 is configured todetermine the image quality of each sub-image 160 derived from orincluded in the image data. The controller 150 may compare thesub-images 160 to a predefined quality threshold. The image quality ofthe image data may be affected by obstructions on the secondary mirrors32, 34, 126, 128, such as steam, grease, food splatter, etc. The lowimage quality produced by an obstructed mirror may affect machinelearning of the monitoring system 44 as the obstructed image databecomes noise in the machine learning process. The contingency switchingprocess between sub-images 160 allows the monitoring system 44 toproceed at or about near-full proficiency for the remainder of thecooking process until the user can remove the obstruction. Thiscontingency may also be advantageous when a cooking receptacle (e.g.,pan, etc.) obstructs at least one of the secondary mirrors 32, 34, 126,128. The controller 150 may also be configured to notify the user thatthere is an obstruction affecting the secondary mirror assembly 30, asdescribed further herein.

As previously stated, different types of analysis with the image datamay utilize a different number of sub-images 160. When excess sub-images160 are obtained (e.g., more sub-images 160 than utilized by theselected analysis), the excess sub-images 160 may be substituted intothe subsequent analysis when at least one sub-image 160 has an imagequality below the predefined quality threshold. In this way, theobstructed sub-image 160 may be replaced by the controller 150 by anon-obstructed sub-image 160 to complete the analysis of the image data.The substitution or replacement may occur during the cooking process,such that the monitoring of the food item 82 during the cooking processis not substantially affected. The controller 150 may be configured toutilize rotated or reverse perspectives in each analysis without thedifferent perspective from the substituted sub-image 160 withoutadversely affecting the analysis. In this way, the controller 150 isconfigured to recognize and analyze the image data from varyingperspectives.

In various aspects, the image data, including the sub-images 160, isanalyzed with an image recognition routine 156. Using the imagerecognition routine 156, the controller 150 is configured to analyze theimage data to determine a type of the food item 82 within the cookingcavity 14. The controller 150 may additionally or alternatively includea classification system for determining a food type of the food item 82in the cooking cavity 14. The memory 152 may include stored informationabout types of food items 82.

In addition to food type, the controller 150 may include at least oneroutine 156 for analyzing the image data to determine a doneness of thefood item 82 within the cooking cavity 14. Generally, the imagerassembly 18 continually captures and communicates image data to thecontroller 150 during a cooking process. The controller 150 may monitorprogressive doneness during the cooking process. In certain aspects, thedoneness may be determined by a brownness of the food item 82. Inadditional non-limiting examples, the doneness may be determined by achange in size or shape of the food item 82. The use of the multipleimage views, allows each sub-image 160 to be a different perspective ofthe food item 82. The different perspectives may be combined to form athree-dimensional image through stereovision. The three-dimensionalimage may be monitored to determine if the food item 82 has changed insize or shape, including mass, depth, and volume. This may beadvantageous for food items 82, such as bread, that rise during thecooking process. The multiple perspectives from the secondary mirrorassembly 30 enable stereovision, which allows detection of statesbetween rising and falling of certain food items 82.

The controller 150 is configured to monitor the food item 82 during acooking process. The controller 150 is communicatively coupled to theheating element 78 and may adjust the heating element 78 in response tothe determined doneness of the food item 82. The doneness may bedetected by, for example, browning of the food item 82 or a sufficientchange in size or shape of the food item 82. The controller 150 may beconfigured to raise or lower a cooking temperature within the cookingcavity 14. Additionally or alternatively, the controller 150 mayincrease or decrease a cooking time for the food item 82. Automaticadjustments to the cooking temperature and the cooking time may becommunicated to the user.

Referring still to FIG. 10 , using stereovision, the controller 150 maydetermine the cooking level 98 of the racks 100 in the cooking cavity 14(e.g., a rack level). Specifically, the controller 150 may determine onwhich rack 100 the food item 82 is positioned and at which level thatrack 100 is positioned. At least one secondary mirror 32, 34, 126, 128may be placed at each cooking level 98 or at each grouping of cookinglevels 98 to obtain multiple perspectives of the cooking levels 98.Alternatively, the secondary mirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 may be arranged atpositions or angles such that each cooking level 98 is included in thereflection zone 122 of at least one secondary mirror 32, 34, 126, 128.The multiple views or perspectives of the cooking levels 98 may allowfor the image data to be obtained in portions of the cooking cavity 14that may be otherwise obscured by the food item 82 or the cookingreceptacle.

The controller 150 is configured to analyze the image data to determinethe presence or absence of the food item 82 on each rack 100 within thecooking cavity 14. In this way, the controller 150 may determine anexact position of the food item 82, which may be advantageous forproviding more precise cooking results. The controller 150 may adjustthe cooking temperature, the cooking time, or other aspects of thecooking process based on the exact position of the food item 82 withinthe cooking cavity 14.

Additionally or alternatively, the controller 150 may adjust which imagedata is processed based on the precise position of the food item 82. Theimage data obtained from the portion of the field of view 24 thatincludes the food item 82 is processed, while the image data without thefood item 82 (e.g., empty pixels) may not be processed. This may beadvantageous for improving machine learning of the monitoring system 44as the empty pixels may be noise that affects the image data processing.Additionally or alternatively, the image sensor 22 may be adjustable tolimit the empty pixels that are processed. The field of view 24 may alsobe adjustable to be broader, narrower, positionally shifted, or anycombination thereof. In various examples, the image sensor 22 may beadjusted to change the scope of the field of view 24. It is contemplatedthat the lens 64 may be adjusted to change the sharpness and/or qualityof the image data obtained by the image sensor 22.

The controller 150 may determine whether the rack 100 is positioned atthe correct cooking level 98 for the type of food item 82. Thecontroller 150 may store an ideal cooking level 98 for various types offood items 82 and may compare the cooking level 98 determined from theimage data with the ideal cooking level 98. For example, if the fooditem 82 is a baked good, a more central cooking level 98 may beadvantageous. If the food item 82 (e.g., a baked good) is positioned tooclose to the heating element 78, the food item 82 may burn. In this way,the controller 150 may determine whether the food item 82 is positionedat the ideal or correct cooking level 98. The controller 150 may beconfigured to notify the user if the food item 82 is that an incorrector less-than-ideal cooking level 98, as described further herein.

Referring still to FIG. 10 , as well as FIGS. 12 and 13 , the controller150 may be configured to generate a notification 170 related to theimage processing, information obtained from the image data, the cookingprocess, adjustments to the cooking process in response to the imagedata, or a combination thereof. In various examples, the notification170 may be displayed on a user interface 172 of the cooking appliance10.

Additionally or alternatively, the controller 150 may be communicativelycoupled to a remote device 180 having a display 182. In such examples,the controller 150 is configured to communicate the notification 170 tothe remote device 180 through a wireless communication interface. Thecontroller 150 may include the communication circuitry 158, which may beconfigured to communicate with the remote device 180 and/or remoteservers (e.g., cloud servers, Internet-connected databases, computers,etc.) via the communication interface. The communication interface maybe a wireless interface, such that the cooking appliance 10 and theremote device 180 are configured to emit wireless signals.

The communication interface may correspond to a variety of communicationprotocols configured to distribute data among various electronicdevices. For example, the communication interface may include an IEEE802.11 connection, an IEEE 802.15 connection, a Bluetooth® connection, aWi-Fi connection, a WiMAX connection, cellular signal, signal usingshared wireless access protocol cord axis (SWAP-CA), or any other typeof radiofrequency or wireless signal. An IEEE 802.15 connection includesany wireless personal area networks (WPAN), such as ZigBee®, Z-wave®,Bluetooth®, UWB, and IrDA. In this way, the communication interface mayprovide for data communication between the controller 150 and the remotedevice 180. The remote device 180 may be, for example, a phone, atablet, a computer, a wearable device, or other electronic devices.

Whether displayed on the user interface 172 or the remote device 180,the notification 170 may include a variety of information. Thenotification 170 may include a variety of information. For example, thenotification 170 may include cooking time information 190. The cookingtime information 190 may include an initial cooking time, and a currentremaining cooking time, and an updated cooking time. Additionally, thecooking time information 190 may include a cooking time adjustment basedon the automatic adjustment in response to the image data (such as thedoneness) as described herein. The notification 170 may also includetemperature information 192. The temperature information 192 may includean initial cooking temperature as well as a current cooking temperature.The current cooking temperature may be a result of an automaticadjustment based on the analysis of the image data as described herein.

Additionally or alternatively, the notification 170 may include foodtype information 194. The food type information 194 may include specificfood and/or a classification of the food item 82. In additionalnon-limiting examples, the notification 170 may also include rack levelinformation 196. The rack level information 196 may include the cookinglevel 98 at which the rack 100 with the food item 82 is positioned.Based on the rack level information 196, the notification 170 mayinclude a rack alert 198. The rack alert 198 may inform the user thatthe food item 82 is positioned at the incorrect cooking level 98 or aless-than-ideal cooking level 98 based on the food type information 194.In addition to the rack alert 198, the notification 170 may also includea cooking tip 200. The cooking tip 200 may include the ideal cookinglevel 98 for the food item 82 in the cooking cavity 14. The cooking tip200 may also include other information for adjusting the cooking process(e.g., time, temperature, etc.) if the food item 82 is to stay at thecurrent, incorrect cooking level 98. The cooking tip 200 may beadvantageous for assisting the user during the cooking process tooptimize the doneness of the food item 82.

In an additional non-limiting example, the notification 170 may alsoinclude an obstruction alert 204 if any portion of the secondary mirrorassembly 30 is obstructed. The obstruction alert 204 may also includewhich secondary mirror 32, 34, 126, 128 is obstructed. Additionally oralternatively, the notification 170 may communicate actions to the userbased on the type of obstruction. For example, if the controller 150determines that food splatter is on one of the secondary mirrors 32, 34,126, 128, the notification 170 may include a tip to clean the secondarymirror assembly 30. In another non-limiting example, if the controller150 determines that the cooking receptacle is obstructing a view of thefood item 82, the notification 170 may include a tip that an alternatecooking receptacle be used in the future. Additionally or alternatively,the notification 170 may include a viewable image 206 of the food item82 so the user may also monitor or confirm the doneness of the food item82. The viewable image 206 may be one of the sub-images 160, the imagedata, the three-dimensional stereovision image, or a combinationthereof. The notification 170 may be visual, audible, haptic, or acombination thereof without departing from the teachings herein.

Referring to FIGS. 1-13 , the monitoring system 44 is configured toactively monitor the food item 82 within the cooking cavity 14 duringthe cooking process. The monitoring system 44 may be activated based ona door triggering event. For example, when the door 16 is opened andthen closed, the monitoring system 44 may be activated to determinewhether the food item 82 is positioned within the cooking cavity 14.Additionally or alternatively, the monitoring system 44 may be activatedwhen the heating element 78 is activated.

The secondary mirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 are arranged around the cookingcavity 14 to reflect various image views to the primary mirror assembly68. Each secondary mirror 32, 34, 126, 128 reflects a separate andunique image view of the cooking cavity 14 to provide multipleperspectives to the image sensor 22. The image views are reflected fromthe secondary mirror assembly 30 to the primary mirror assembly 68,which then reflects the image views to the image sensor 22. The imagesensor 22 captures the image data, including the multiple image views,and communicates the image data to the controller 150 for use by thecooking appliance 10. The image data may be analyzed by the controller150 and utilized to control the operation of the cooking appliance 10,to control the cooking process, and to alert the user about adjustmentsand cooking tips as described herein. The monitoring system 44 maymonitor the progress of the food item 82 throughout the cooking processand automatically make adjustments based on information obtained fromthe image data.

Use of the present system may provide for a variety of advantages. Forexample, the monitoring system 44 may provide a flexible implementationin the cooking appliance 10. In this way, the imager assembly 18 may bespaced from the heating element 78 and utilize the primary mirrorassembly 68 and the secondary mirror assembly 30 to obtain multipleviews of the cooking cavity 14. The imager assembly 18 may be spacedfrom the heating element 78 to increase the longevity of the imagesensor 22, as well as reduce splatter on the lens 64. Moreover, themonitoring system 44 may reduce manufacturing costs by reducingadditional venting used in convention systems for cooling cameras andother image devices. Additionally, the monitoring system 44 usesstereovision with the single image sensor 22 and multiple differentviews of the cooking cavity 14 from various mirrors. Stereovision may beadvantageous for providing a three-dimensional image of the cookingcavity 14, which allows for depth, volume, and mass determinations ofthe food item 82 within the cooking cavity 14. Further, the secondarymirror assembly 30 may include between about two mirrors and about fourmirrors within or adjacent to the cooking cavity 14 to provide multipleimage views. The mirrors within the monitoring system 44 may also allowmonitoring of an increased area within the cooking cavity 14.

Also, the monitoring system 44 is configured to determine a variety ofinformation about the food item 82 using the image data received by theimager assembly 18. The controller 150 is configured to determine thetype of food item 82 within the cooking cavity 14, the doneness of thefood item 82, and the cooking level 98 of the rack 100 on which the fooditem 82 is positioned. Further, the controller 150 may use the variousdeterminations to adjust the operation of the cooking appliance 10. Forexample, the monitoring system 44 may adjust the cooking temperature orthe cooking time based on at least the doneness determined by thecontroller 150. Additionally, the monitoring system 44 may notify theuser that the food item 82 is positioned at the improper cooking levels98 based on the type of food. Further, the monitoring system 44 mayupdate in real-time to disregard image views from obstructed secondarymirrors 32, 34, 126, 128 and substitute non-obstructed sub-images 160.The real-time adjustment may avoid occlusions and obstructions withinthe image data. Additional benefits or advantages will be realizedand/or achieved.

The device disclosed herein is further summarized in the followingparagraphs and is further characterized by combinations of any and allof the various aspects described therein.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a cookingappliance includes a body defining a cooking cavity. A door is rotatablycoupled to the body. An imager assembly is coupled to an interiorsurface of the door. The imager assembly includes an image sensorconfigured to obtain image data within a field of view, a first primarymirror positioned at a first angle proximate to the image sensor andwithin the field of view, and a second primary mirror positioned at asecond angle proximate to the image sensor and within the field of view.A secondary mirror assembly includes multiple secondary mirrors coupledto the body within the cooking cavity. The secondary mirrors reflectimage views within the cooking cavity to the first primary mirror andthe second primary mirror, which reflects the image views to the imagesensor to be captured as the image data.

According to another aspect, a controller is operably coupled to animager assembly to receive image data. The controller is configured toseparate the image data into multiple sub-images for image recognitionprocessing. Each sub-image corresponds with one of the secondarymirrors.

According to another aspect, multiple secondary mirrors include a firstsecondary mirror disposed in a first rear corner within a cooking cavityand a second secondary mirror disposed within a second rear corner ofthe cooking cavity.

According to another aspect, multiple secondary mirrors include a thirdsecondary mirror disposed in a third rear corner within a cooking cavityand a fourth secondary mirror disposed within a fourth rear corner ofthe cooking cavity.

According to another aspect, an imager assembly includes a supportstructure defining an interior cavity. An image sensor is disposed on afirst side of the interior cavity and a first primary mirror and asecond primary mirror are disposed on a second side of the interiorcavity.

According to another aspect, a controller is operably coupled to animager assembly. The controller is configured to determine at least oneof a food type, a food doneness, a cooking time, a rack level, and anobstruction on at least one of multiple secondary mirrors utilizingimage data.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a stereovisionmonitoring system for a cooking appliance includes a body defining acooking cavity. A door is rotatably coupled to the body. An imagerassembly is coupled to one of the door and the body. The imager assemblyincludes a support feature that defines an interior cavity, an imagercoupled to the support feature on a first side of the interior cavity,and at least one primary mirror coupled to the support feature on asecond side of the interior cavity. At least one secondary mirror isdisposed within the cooking cavity. The at least one secondary mirrorreflects at least one image view of the cooking cavity to the at leastone primary mirror. The at least one primary mirror reflects the atleast one image view to the imager to be captured as image data. Acontroller is operably coupled to the imager assembly to receive theimage data.

According to another aspect, at least one primary mirror includes afirst primary mirror and a second primary mirror. At least one secondarymirror includes a first secondary mirror and a second secondary mirror.

According to another aspect, at least one image view includes a firstimage view and a second image view. A first secondary mirror reflectsthe first image view to a first primary mirror and a second secondarymirror reflects the second image view to a second primary mirror.

According to another aspect, a controller is configured to separateimage data into multiple sub-images that correspond with a first imageview and a second image view for image recognition processing.

According to another aspect, a rack is disposed within a cooking cavity.A controller is configured to process image data to determine at leastone of a rack level within the cooking cavity and if a food item isdisposed on the rack.

According to another aspect, a controller is configured to process imagedata to determine a type of food. The controller is configured togenerate a notification if a rack is disposed at an incorrect cookinglevel based on the type of food.

According to another aspect, a controller is configured to determinewhether at least one secondary mirror is obstructed based on image datathat corresponds with at least one image view reflected from the atleast one secondary mirror.

According to another aspect, a heating element is disposed within acooking cavity and is operably coupled to a controller. The controlleris configured to adjust a cooking temperature produced by the heatingelement in response to image data.

According to yet another aspect, an image system for a cooking applianceincludes a support structure. An imager is coupled to the supportstructure. The imager is configured to obtain image data within a fieldof view. A primary mirror assembly is coupled to the support structureproximate to the imager. The primary mirror assembly includes a firstprimary mirror, which is disposed at a first angle within the field ofview of the imager, and a second primary mirror, which is disposed at asecond angle within the field of view of the imager. A secondary mirrorassembly is configured to reflect image views of the cooking cavity tothe primary mirror assembly. The image views are reflected by theprimary mirror assembly to the imager to be captured as the image data.A controller is configured to receive the image data from the imager.

According to another aspect, a secondary mirror assembly includes asecondary mirror disposed in at least one front corner of a cookingcavity.

According to another aspect, a controller is configured to generate anotification to be communicated to a remote device.

According to another aspect, a notification includes at least one of acorrect cooking level, a type of food within a cooking cavity, anupdated cooking time, and a cooking temperature.

According to another aspect, a secondary mirror assembly includesmultiple secondary mirrors. A controller is configured to separate theimage data into multiple sub-images that correspond with the multiplesecondary mirrors.

According to another aspect, a controller is configured to analyze theimage data to determine an image quality of each sub-image. If the imagequality of at least one of the sub-images is below a predefined qualitythreshold, the controller is configured to determine that acorresponding secondary mirror is obstructed and consequently configuredto utilize a different sub-image for subsequent image processing.

It will be understood by one having ordinary skill in the art thatconstruction of the described disclosure and other components is notlimited to any specific material. Other exemplary embodiments of thedisclosure disclosed herein may be formed from a wide variety ofmaterials, unless described otherwise herein.

For purposes of this disclosure, the term “coupled” (in all of itsforms, couple, coupling, coupled, etc.) generally means the joining oftwo components (electrical or mechanical) directly or indirectly to oneanother. Such joining may be stationary in nature or movable in nature.Such joining may be achieved with the two components (electrical ormechanical) and any additional intermediate members being integrallyformed as a single unitary body with one another or with the twocomponents. Such joining may be permanent in nature or may be removableor releasable in nature unless otherwise stated.

It is also important to note that the construction and arrangement ofthe elements of the disclosure as shown in the exemplary embodiments isillustrative only. Although only a few embodiments of the presentinnovations have been described in detail in this disclosure, thoseskilled in the art who review this disclosure will readily appreciatethat many modifications are possible (e.g., variations in sizes,dimensions, structures, shapes, and proportions of the various elements,values of parameters, mounting arrangements, use of materials, colors,orientations, etc.) without materially departing from the novelteachings and advantages of the subject matter recited. For example,elements shown as integrally formed may be constructed of multiple partsor elements shown as multiple parts may be integrally formed, theoperation of the interfaces may be reversed or otherwise varied, thelength or width of the structures and/or members or connector or otherelements of the system may be varied, the nature or number of adjustmentpositions provided between the elements may be varied. It should benoted that the elements and/or assemblies of the system may beconstructed from any of a wide variety of materials that providesufficient strength or durability, in any of a wide variety of colors,textures, and combinations. Accordingly, all such modifications areintended to be included within the scope of the present innovations.Other substitutions, modifications, changes, and omissions may be madein the design, operating conditions, and arrangement of the desired andother exemplary embodiments without departing from the spirit of thepresent innovations.

It will be understood that any described processes or steps withindescribed processes may be combined with other disclosed processes orsteps to form structures within the scope of the present disclosure. Theexemplary structures and processes disclosed herein are for illustrativepurposes and are not to be construed as limiting.

What is claimed is:
 1. A cooking appliance, comprising: a body defininga cooking cavity; a door rotatably coupled to the body; an imagerassembly coupled to an interior surface of the door, wherein the imagerassembly includes: an image sensor configured to obtain image datawithin a field of view; a first primary mirror positioned at a firstangle proximate to the image sensor and within the field of view; and asecond primary mirror positioned at a second angle proximate to theimage sensor and within the field of view; and a secondary mirrorassembly including multiple secondary mirrors coupled to the body withinthe cooking cavity, wherein the secondary mirrors reflect image viewswithin the cooking cavity to the first primary mirror and the secondprimary mirror which reflect the image views to the image sensor to becaptured as the image data.
 2. The cooking appliance of claim 1, furthercomprising: a controller operably coupled to the imager assembly toreceive the image data, wherein the controller is configured to separatethe image data into multiple sub-images for image recognitionprocessing, wherein each sub-image corresponds with one of the secondarymirrors.
 3. The cooking appliance of claim 1, wherein the multiplesecondary mirrors include a first secondary mirror disposed in a firstrear corner within the cooking cavity and a second secondary mirrordisposed within a second rear corner of the cooking cavity.
 4. Thecooking appliance of claim 3, wherein the multiple secondary mirrorsinclude a third secondary mirror disposed in a third rear corner withinthe cooking cavity and a fourth secondary mirror disposed within afourth rear corner of the cooking cavity.
 5. The cooking appliance ofclaim 1, wherein the imager assembly includes a support structuredefining an interior cavity, and wherein the image sensor is disposed ona first side of the interior cavity and the first primary mirror and thesecond primary mirror are disposed on a second side of the interiorcavity.
 6. The cooking appliance of claim 1, further comprising: acontroller operably coupled to the imager assembly, wherein thecontroller is configured to determine at least one of a food type, afood doneness, a cooking time, a rack level, and an obstruction on atleast one of the multiple secondary mirrors utilizing to the image data.7. A stereovision monitoring system for a cooking appliance, comprising:a body defining a cooking cavity; a door rotatably coupled to the body;an imager assembly coupled to one of the door and the body, wherein theimager assembly includes: a support feature defining an interior cavity;an imager coupled to the support feature on a first side of the interiorcavity; and at least one primary mirror coupled to the support featureon a second side of the interior cavity; at least one secondary mirrordisposed within the cooking cavity, wherein the at least one secondarymirror reflects at least one image view of the cooking cavity to the atleast one primary mirror, wherein the at least one primary mirrorreflects the at least one image view to the imager to be captured asimage data; and a controller operably coupled to the imager assembly toreceive the image data.
 8. The stereovision monitoring system of claim7, wherein the at least one primary mirror includes a first primarymirror and a second primary mirror, and wherein the at least onesecondary mirror includes a first secondary mirror and a secondsecondary mirror.
 9. The stereovision monitoring system of claim 8,wherein the at least one image view includes a first image view and asecond image view, and wherein the first secondary mirror reflects thefirst image view to the first primary mirror and the second secondarymirror reflects the second image view to the second primary mirror. 10.The stereovision monitoring system of claim 9, wherein the controller isconfigured to separate the image data into multiple sub-images thatcorrespond with the first image view and the second image view for imagerecognition processing.
 11. The stereovision monitoring system of claim7, further comprising: a rack disposed within the cooking cavity,wherein the controller is configured to process the image data todetermine at least one of a rack level within the cooking cavity and ifa food item is disposed on the rack.
 12. The stereovision monitoringsystem of claim 11, wherein the controller is configured to process theimage data to determine a type of food, and wherein the controller isconfigured to generate a notification if the rack is disposed at anincorrect cooking level based on the type of food.
 13. The stereovisionmonitoring system of claim 7, wherein the controller is configured todetermine whether the at least secondary mirror is obstructed based onthe image data that corresponds with the at least one image viewreflected from the at least one secondary mirror.
 14. The stereovisionmonitoring system of claim 7, further comprising: a heating elementdisposed within the cooking cavity and operably coupled to thecontroller, wherein the controller is configured to adjust a cookingtemperature produced by the heating element in response to the imagedata.
 15. An image system for a cooking appliance, comprising: a supportstructure; an imager coupled to the support structure, wherein theimager is configured to obtain image data within a field of view; aprimary mirror assembly coupled to the support structure proximate tothe imager, wherein the primary mirror assembly includes: a firstprimary mirror disposed at a first angle within the field of view of theimager; and a second primary mirror disposed at a second angle withinthe field of view of the imager; a secondary mirror assembly configuredto reflect image views of a cooking cavity to the primary mirrorassembly, and wherein the image views are reflected by the primarymirror assembly to the imager to be captured as the image data; and acontroller configured to receive the image data from the imager.
 16. Theimage system of claim 15, wherein the secondary mirror assembly includesa secondary mirror disposed in at least one front corner of the cookingcavity.
 17. The image system of claim 15, wherein the controller isconfigured to generate a notification to be communicated to a remotedevice.
 18. The image system of claim 17, wherein the notificationincludes at least one of a correct cooking level, a type of food withinthe cooking cavity, an updated cooking time, and a cooking temperature.19. The image system of claim 15, wherein the secondary mirror assemblyincludes multiple secondary mirrors, and wherein the controller isconfigured to separate the image data into multiple sub-images thatcorrespond with the multiple secondary mirrors.
 20. The image system ofclaim 19, wherein the controller is configured to analyze the image datato determine an image quality of each sub-image, and wherein if theimage quality of at least one of the sub-images is below a predefinedquality threshold the controller is configured to determine that thecorresponding secondary mirror is obstructed and consequently configuredto utilize a different sub-image for subsequent image processing.